tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50926598459092285722024-03-05T20:31:39.234-08:00Brandon DraugelisUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger60125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-15612759118325325002012-12-18T15:05:00.000-08:002012-12-18T15:05:55.232-08:00Looking back at 2012<br />
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It has been another great year of racing. I finished 7th overall in the NUE series which has been more competitive than ever while taking home two 3rd place finished at Syllamo's and the Hampshire 100. With all of the 100's that I've done this year I truly miss most of the regional races that I have done since I began racing 13 years ago. Out of all of the places that I have been, we have the best riding right here in the Mid-Atlantic and for 2013 I am looking to stay local for the most part and showcase all of the great riding and racing that the region has to offer. Keep checking back for more updates. It's going to be a great year coming up!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-46568249163584765042012-08-22T06:03:00.003-07:002012-08-22T06:03:52.007-07:00Catching up: Lumberjack to Hampshire
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These past couple of months have been
extremely busy trying to get prepared to go back to school, which has
involved several observation hours, doctor's appointments, and of
course refreshing my brain , without neglecting my duties at work or
on the bike. Following a lackluster performance at Lumberjack where
both my bike and body were rejecting the idea of a decent finish I
took a few weekends away from racing to get in some solid training in
preparation for the last few NUE races of the season.
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Two weeks before the Wilderness 101 I
decided to test out my speed at the Bulldog Rump XC race in northern
Jersey where I was able to take my first victory of the season,
winning by a couple of minutes within an hour and a half race. Now
that my anaerobic fitness was in check I was psyched to do the Curse
of Dark Hollow 40 mile race the following weekend in my back yard in
Michaux State Forest. Everything started out really well there. I
was able to ride in the lead accompanied by Rob Spreng for the first
30 miles without riding much harder than tempo before my rear tire
punctured. Normally this isn't a deal breaker at Michaux, but when
your backup tube also has a hole in it the game is over. So my
endurance felt great throughout the day and I took the flat tire as
just a part of racing. Maybe it was for the better as I would feel
just a little more rested for Wilderness.
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A week later and I'm back on the
starting line in Coburn, PA. The Wilderness 101 seems be be
gathering a faster group of racers each and every year ant this time
around was no exception. The start of the race was the same as
usual, but before mile 40 hit I was already all alone chasing whoever
was in front of me. Fortunately with a deep field of talented riders
I spent the entire race battling back and forth with Garth Prosser,
Rob Spreng, Jake Sitler, and Mike Simonson and was able to finish up
with a solid 8th on the day, which wasn't bad considering the top 5
had finished all within 6:45:00!
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With my confidence, endurance, and
speed back where they should be I took the next couple of weeks to do
a pair of XC races at Bear Creek to keep my speed in check and have
some fun in the rocks. I finished 4th the first weekend and 3rd the
following weekend and was 1st place working man both weekends, which
was not too shabby. The following week would be another test of
endurance with the next stop of the NUE series, the Hampshire 100.</div>
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Going into Hampshire I knew I would
have a great race, but with another competitive field to race against
I wasn't sure where I would end up. The start of this race was much
like Wilderness with a large group taking the front of the race for
the first 20 miles. After that was a series of steeeeep rollers that
would just suck the power right out of you if you could not stay on
top of a big gear. This is where the pack splintered into a small
lead group and several small chase groups. I was in the first chase
group with Rob Spreng and two others trying to track down the leaders
(or not let them get too far away)! By mile 40 we caught and passed
Jonathan Schlotter who had an impressive 2nd place at Wilderness two
weeks prior along with Jeremiah Bishop who was repairing a tire at
the moment. Once Jeremiah was back on the bike he flew by us all and
most of the chase group followed trying to hold his wheel. Schlotter
and I were left behind and soon I would drop Schlotter and eventually
bridge back up to Spreng by mile 50. The two of us rode and worked
together through the end of the first lap and all the way to the aid
station at mile 90 where the course would enter one of the final
singletrack sections. While on the second lap we were both
surprisingly informed that we were in 4th and 5th place which was
hard to believe and motivating at the same time. We would again
catch and pass Bishop who was again having tire issues around mile
80. This is where I decided to pick it up a little without making an
attack on Rob. I knew if we worked together we could probable hold
of Jeremiah improving our positions as well as helping out Christian
by giving him an edge over Jeremiah for the NUE Series overall
standings. As we rolled into the aid station at mile 90 I attacked
hard assuming we were much closer to the finish. After a few miles I
realized my early move, but was able to continue my pace to the
finish placing 3rd for the day! It looks like I'll be back in the
running for a top 5 overall finish in the NUE Series, but only time
will tell.
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-60393620132771982932012-06-11T18:40:00.005-07:002012-06-11T18:40:51.406-07:00Mohican 100<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="http://bigbikesmedia.cyclingdirt.org/embed/ODg1NjM5OTU0?related=1" title="MH100 Brandon Draugelis Mohican SP Un-Cut" width="480"></iframe><br />
<a href="http://bigbikesmedia.cyclingdirt.org/coverage/249412-Mohican-100-2012">Watch more video of Mohican 100 2012 on thom.cyclingdirt.org</a><br />
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Over the past few years the Mohican 100
has always treated me well. I almost always seem to feel fresh going
into the Mohican and the course itself plays to some of my advantages
beginning with a long stretch of singletrack in the beginning and
ending with redundant steep short climbs. After settling into my
pace a few minutes after the start of this year's event I expected
to have my best Mohican yet. As soon as we hit the first section of
dirt I found myself at the front driving the pace, but at the same
time being careful to not go too hard too early. Once the trail
funneled into the singletrack of the Mohican Wilderness Christian
pushed towards the front to take control of the pace. At first I had
thought that this would be the perfect opportunity for the two of us
to work together and blow apart the front of the race, but when
Christian's pace had not dropped after the first 10 - 15 miles I
decided it would be safest to back off a bit and save my legs for
later on. I finished out the rest of the first 25 miles of trail
riding with Rob Spreng who has really stepped up his game this year
and is killing it at every race. So we rode together and traded some
pulls until we were caught on a gravel road around mile 30, just
before aid station #2. Our chase group now included some other top
NUE contenders including Mike Simonson, Chris Peariso, and Jordan
Wakely. I thought we would be catching up to Christian for sure.
After aid station #2 we powered on and quickly reached aid #3, but to
my surprise the gap to Christian had not shrunk. It was mind blowing
to imagine how hard he must have been pushing it off the front by
himself and taking on a steady headwind without losing a seconds
time. After aid #3 I noticed that I was beginning to fade and
started to be even more conservative, but somewhere before reaching
aid #4 I was forced to drop off the pace and recover a little more.
Once I felt a little better it was back to hammering, but this time
alone. I was kicking myself for not sticking with the chase group,
but at the same time felt it was a good decision as my race could
have been ruined by a heavy bonk. I kept the gap to the chase group
manageable until the final aid station where it had grown to 9
minutes. With only one section of 1 track left I enjoyed the final
miles of the race satisfied with my 6 place finish with a time of
around 6:55:00, which was my best time yet for this event! Check out
some more of the great footage from Thom at cyclingdirt.org on the
2012 Mohican 100.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-88060294348529904522012-05-25T04:58:00.001-07:002012-05-25T04:58:06.544-07:00Syllamo 125K<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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After placing 3rd in the 2011 edition of the Syllamo 125K in Mountain
View, AR I had nothing but positive vibes going into this year’s event.
I was a little unsure how the start was going to unwind on the short 1
mile climb leading to the singletrack since the fight to be near the
front at Cohutta was a real battle. However once the race began and we
started to climb, the steep grade immediately started to string out the
pack. I was fortunate enough to be at the front with Christian and Drew.
As we neared the top we already had a sizable gap on the next rider and
I took to the front getting the holeshot and the <a href="http://app.strava.com/challenges/syllamos-revenge-2012">Strava</a>
KOM. Once on the trail I kept the pace high and simply enjoyed myself
on the rough Arkansas terrain skating around the gravelly corners and
floating over the rocks. I even put on a show for Drew who was right
behind me as I unclipped both feet flying over a rock garden in an
attempt to pull off a Superman followed up with an <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1CyVOIbxiM">X-factor</a>,
but I was not confident enough to let go of the bars. The three of us
continued pushing the pace at the front and were also joined by Rob
Spreng until he suffered the misfortunes of a sidewall tear about 20
miles in. The miles were flying by and I was expecting it to be one hell
of a sufferfest at the end. However just before aid station 2 Christian
took a header in a rock garden in front of me. I came to a stop to see
if he was ok as he laid there with his bike on top of him. After saying
that he was ok I took off to catch back up to Drew. Unfortunately for
Christian the damage was a little more than he expected as he noticed a
puncture wound in his leg after standing back up which ultimately forced
him to end his pursuit for the day. I caught back up to Drew, but then
slowly started to lose him again as he steadily picked up the pace.
After just chasing back on I decided to keep it steady and hope for a
payoff by the finish as we were not yet at the half way point.
Everything was continuing to go smoothly until after aid station 4 when I
really began to notice the heat and humidity that the Southeast is
known for. I went out on the second lap of the red loop which was
approximately 12 miles expecting to only need 1 bottle of Perpetuem but
with 90 degrees of sunshine blasting the course my body was running on
fumes and 3 bottles would have been much more appropriate. I soon began
cramping and knew the last stretch of the race was going to be painful.
Each pedal stroke seemed harder than the last and I began to worry about
other racers coming up from behind. I pressed on, but not without
looking over my shoulder every 5 minutes. The final hour and a half of
the race felt like it was longer than the previous 5 hours, but I was
able to hold onto 2nd place which was my best NUE finish to date!
Looking back over the past few weeks of racing I would have never
expected a result like this, but now I know that my form is back along
with my confidence which will hopefully lead me to having a very
successful campaign in the 2012 NUE Series.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-48353751982949635442012-05-19T16:21:00.001-07:002012-05-19T16:21:58.288-07:00Finally have my legs backFinally have my legs back and placed 2nd at the Syllamo 125k today! Race report to follow soon.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-57842117667220535652012-05-13T08:18:00.003-07:002012-05-13T08:18:18.383-07:00Driven and ready to suffer<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The start to this year's racing season
has been a little shaky at best and that is being on the optimistic
side. I missed the first race of the season, Dragon's Tale, near
Roanoke, VA due to a mild knee injury, followed up with a mediocre
XC race in Big Bear, WV and then a 14th at the Cohutta 100. It was
after this race that I realized it was not just bad luck. It was
simply my WORST 100 mile race ever. I missed the lead group at the
start, did not have the legs to catch back on, and did not start to
make any passes until the second half of the race. I had better
results as an endurance newbie shoving oatmeal creampies and cinnamon
buns down my throat at aid stations. On the way back from Cohutta I
obsessed about the hours that I put in on the bike over the past 6
months and realized that I have been lacking something... the taste
of blood in my mouth before being replaced by vomit on my 5th hill
repeat, or was it riding to the point of becoming dizzy and
lightheaded and so hungry that the last 5 miles of a ride feels like
a full century. Although I have been hammering out the miles I feel
like I have not been challenged enough recently so Monday morning,
two days after climbing 14,000' in TN I delighted myself with some
hill repeats and it felt oh so good. I hit it hard for a couple of
more days and then went to VA for a 40 mile race at Douthat State
Park. I had ridden the trails there before and they are spectacular,
so there was no doubt that it would be a good time. From the start I
took the holeshot and was out of sight on the first climb. What I
did not realize was at the top there must have been some sort of a
course marking pointing across the ridgeline with much more
significance than the 6 red arrow pointing down the mountain to
follow the XC course. After unknowingly going off course I continued
on at my endurance race pace for the next hour until I came to an
intersection without any course markings at all and finally found my
way back to the start/finish area realizing that I had completed a
poorly marked XC course and not the 40 mile adventure I had signed up
for. This time it was back luck, but sucked a lot less. After a
hard week of riding I could feel that my legs were coming back. So
here we are a week later and I'm on the starting line of the MASS XC
race at French Creek. All of the usual fast guys are there plus a
few youngsters that found some real speed since last season. From
the beginning I had an excellent start going into the woods in 2nd
behind Aaron pushing so hard that I vomited at least 3 times on the
first climb making for a wonderful second breakfast. I lost a couple
of spots on the second climb and found myself somewhere around 10th.
The frustration at this point was off the charts, but I kept on
digging deep and worked my way back into 5th riding consistently on
every lap. This I was really happy with. Aside from the small
setback on the first lap I felt strong and fast throughout the entire
race and expect to be throwing down at the front again very soon.
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-1143800848959343422011-09-27T19:43:00.000-07:002011-09-27T19:51:53.234-07:00Team CF Cycle for LifeIt's happened again, I've been slacking on this blog and haven't had the time to post any race reports in quite some time. That will come soon with a recap on the last few races of the year, but more importantly I'm going to be participating in the Cycle for Life charity ride on October 8th for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. If you do not yet have plans for that weekend I would encourage anyone to participate. There is also a ride on October 9th in the Philly area if that might be closer to a lot of you reading this. You can find more details about these great events at www.cff.org. If you cannot make it to either of these events and would like to help out with a great cause you can make a donation at <a href="http://www.cff.org/LWC/dsp_DonationPage.cfm?idEvent=16038&idUser=515887">http://www.cff.org/LWC/dsp_DonationPage.cfm?idEvent=16038&idUser=515887</a> . Thanks!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-19259536409824686792011-06-29T06:05:00.001-07:002011-06-29T06:05:21.604-07:00Subaru Cup Pro XCT<p class="MsoNormal">This year’s Subaru Cup Pro XCT race was extremely challenging and fast.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Taking place in Wisconsin you would never think it to be hilly, but all of the short punchy climbs on the 4 mile lap would total 500’ of elevation gain.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Multiply that by 6 laps and add in 67 of the fastest Pro XCT regulars and you have yourself a race. Besides all of the short climbing it seemed as if most of the course was fairly technical singletrack loaded with plenty of twists, turns, rocks, drops, roots, and a few tight squeezes.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It really reminded me of Bear Creek or French creek, but without the extended climbs which is a good thing for me.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The day before the race I made the trip from PA with Travis Saeler which made the 16 hour drive seem more like 8.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Our lack of rest stops had us at the venue with plenty of time to get in a few laps before going back to the hotel and hitting up the Piggly Wiggly for some food.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It was a long day but there was plenty of time to rest up for the following day’s race.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I was up early enough with more than adequate time to pack my race bag, check my bike over, and get nervous for a few hours so we went over to the venue early to check and see how Carolyn and Sarah were doing in the women’s race.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>In their race Carolyn came in 18<sup>th</sup> and Sarah in 14<sup>th </sup>out of one of the larger women’s fields so far this year.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>At the start of our race I had a mid-pack call up in 47<sup>th</sup>, which was much better than my starting position in TX.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>However that did not avoid getting stuck in the traffic jam where the double track narrowed down and entered the woods 200 yards after the start.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>So immediately I was off of my bike and running through the weeds trying to squeeze past a few racers stuck in the slow moving gridlock.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>After things got moving again it was back on the bike and single file until the next wide section would open up the course for passing.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>From that point on it was smooth sailing and time to have fun and start making up ground.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I was steadily passing other racers each lap and it felt like I could always shift into a larger gear.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The laps seemed to blur together as the race went on and before I knew it I was on the final lap and pushing hard to the finish.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>In the end I came in 37<sup>th</sup> and was spent after crossing the finish line.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It was a great race and hopefully this event will make another appearance on the Pro XCT calendar next year.</p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-49571063861808770442011-06-07T05:59:00.000-07:002011-06-07T17:09:48.092-07:003rd's Come In 3's<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7WjGjEg4c_W2xF7xjV5_deZvoujTa5xCg5nTtsSYOj7KI9-S5IbM9L7F_jP7YhcQLya21MbUXIVmHKJJvZ2_osDJ6D5BefPYZSY4P2o2mh1yvd9SW8KscTPIeF29AfRhcuk6fd5w1Bis/s1600/2011+greenbrier+012.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 356px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7WjGjEg4c_W2xF7xjV5_deZvoujTa5xCg5nTtsSYOj7KI9-S5IbM9L7F_jP7YhcQLya21MbUXIVmHKJJvZ2_osDJ6D5BefPYZSY4P2o2mh1yvd9SW8KscTPIeF29AfRhcuk6fd5w1Bis/s400/2011+greenbrier+012.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5615462131974611522" /></a><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 19px; ">Since my last post on the MASS race at French Creek I finally got to do some endurance racing and begin my campaign in the NUE series. A few weeks ago I started off my NUE season with the all new Syllamo 125k, which now happens to be one of my favorite “100 mile” races. This one comes up a little shorter than usual with mileage, but makes up for itself with some great singletrack! From the start I found myself up front with teammate, Christian Tanguy, and former NUE series winner, Jeff Schalk. The pace didn’t seem terribly fast at first as we cruised through the first half of the race together. I had been riding conservatively due to a shoulder injury that was still bothering me from crashing the previous weekend and was not planning on making any moves on my own at this point in the game. As I followed Jeff through a rocky section of trail I punctured my rear tire and was forced to stop and put a tube in the tire to get back up and running again. This unfortunate situation had me riding the rest of the race alone trying to catch back up to the leaders. In the end my place had not changed as I came in 3rd with Christian taking his second NUE series win and strengthening his lead.<br />Following Syllamo’s I went back to racing XC at Greenbrier State Park in MD. This race always has a stacked Pro field and this year was no exception with 20 of the area’s top pro racers on the line. The starting pace seemed just as fast as any of the Pro XCT races that I have been doing. Going into the singletrack I found myself somewhere in the top 5 and I tried to pace myself early on so that I could make up time in the later laps. As the race progressed my lap times remained steady and even got faster towards the end. However this was not enough to catch up to race winner, Nick Waite who was only a minute up, or second place finisher, Matt Bailey who had only been 20 seconds ahead. For the second race in a row I took another podium spot finishing up 3rd.<br />This past weekend held another stop in the NUE series with the Mohican 100. After having a breakthrough race here two years ago, finishing 5th in a super competitive field I was ready to top my previous performance. From the start this race had more of an XC feel than an endurance event with Josh Tostado taking the early lead in the singletrack. I followed Josh’s pace and we quickly pulled away from the rest of the field. After the first 15 miles we were alone, but I would soon find out that there was a chase group not too far behind containing Christian, Jeff, and Michael Simonson. By mile 30 where we exited the Mohican Wilderness we were all together for the next long stretch of fireroad and pavement. We rode at a high pace without any more attacks until around mile 50 where Michael laid down a hard effort shattering our group. Josh was the first to drop back followed by me, then Christian, while Jeff hung on and rode away from the rest of us with Michael. From here it would be a long solo stretch until I caught back up to Christian around mile 75. Once bridging back up to my teammate the two of us rode the rest of the race together hoping that the leaders would not be too far ahead. In the end we rolled through the finish together with myself in 3rd and Christian in 4th. In the meantime, teammate Cheryl Sorenson dominated the women’s race taking the win with more than 13 minutes on 2nd place!</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-16469938542522321712011-05-08T18:03:00.001-07:002011-05-08T18:04:44.554-07:00More Traveling, More Racing, and a New Ride!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHEpaQ4i4v1ecyxoHkWsq2YXTtJz3p4eMitKl3LF4IgLUDrgahLqndeDbefIDoYy8N9tcTpYjIA_cBU_JXJMfpOniW8KXp9wHezoxfVj9PKCq6BFnt04sjxPKRimOUR6j81PDcZhWm0ng/s1600/DSCN0214.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 395px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHEpaQ4i4v1ecyxoHkWsq2YXTtJz3p4eMitKl3LF4IgLUDrgahLqndeDbefIDoYy8N9tcTpYjIA_cBU_JXJMfpOniW8KXp9wHezoxfVj9PKCq6BFnt04sjxPKRimOUR6j81PDcZhWm0ng/s400/DSCN0214.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5604516008419379202" /></a><br /><p class="MsoNormal">I’ve been slacking a bit on the blogging, but I have been on a busy schedule since the Mellow Johnny’s Classic Pro XCT race last two weekends ago.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The course, race, and the atmosphere at this race cannot even be compared to any of the other Pro XCT races so far this year.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It was noticeable that the race promoters were out to please the racers at this venue with a course that was almost entirely singletrack, and great singletrack on that.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>This was no course where a beefed up cross bike would be envied.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The trails demanded a bit of technical skill with rock gardens, loose corners, a couple of drops, and some tricky short steep power climbs.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Since this was a UCI race, the laps were only 4 miles long and only 20 miles for the entire race.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Even though the laps were short I would not have minded doing 10 or more laps.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The day of the race was going to be busy, waking up early and handing off bottles during the Pro women’s race before going out and burning in a lap on the course before my race had started.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Luckily it was overcast and cool for the women’s race which made it fun to watch, especially since everyone who I had been handing bottle to were killing it.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Carolyn had a great race, cracking the top ten and finishing in 7<sup>th</sup> which was inspiring for me to go out and try to chase down a top twenty result.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>By the time I got to warming up the sun had poked out and the Texas heat had greeted me reaching the 90’s in no time at all.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The random call up had me in a rough starting position one row from the back, but I wasn’t going to let that bother me.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Once the race started I struggled to find my way through the dust cloud for the first five minutes of the race, but then was able to get into a groove and start passing.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>After a fun first two laps where I passed around 20 or so racers the heat began to feel a bit taxing. <span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I forced myself to drink and take advantage of the neutral feed zone and douse myself with a bottle of water each lap to keep my temperature down, which worked amazingly well.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>This allowed me to keep my pace high and by the end I finished up 26th, which wasn’t quite top 20 but it was my best Pro XCT race so far this year!<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Once I got back from Texas I picked up my new S-Works Epic!<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>After building this bike up I could not wait to get some miles on it.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>After a couple of days of packing, cleaning, and getting ready to move out of my old apartment I finally found the time to get out and ride this bike at Blue Knob State Park with my training partner, Travis.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>With a 1500’ vertical mountain to play on I quickly found out how well this bike climbed!<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It was just as efficient as any hardtail going up and the downhills were absolutely a blast.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I have never felt another 100mm full suspension bike that ate up the bumps like this rig.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>When the going got rough it felt as though the bike had much more travel and I felt absolutely zero flex pushing my personal limits in the corners.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>By the end of the ride I was licking my chops thinking about how fun this bike was going to be to race at the MASS race at French Creek this weekend, which is one of the notoriously rocky courses on the MASS circuit.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">After weeks of rain I was expecting French Creek to be a mud bath, but to my surprise the trails were bone dry with the exceptions of two slick spots that barely had enough mud to splash up onto the bike.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It was great to see that the course had been lengthened from 1.5 laps or 20 miles to 2, 15 mile laps!<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>From the start I layed it down hard in an attempt to get the hole shot entering the singletrack, but was passed close to the top of the first climb by Jeff Schalk who had the honors of leading the rest of us down the first rocky downhill.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I took advantage of not leading and recovered as much as I could and let my Epic eat up all of the rocks.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>On the following climb I stayed glued to Jeff’s wheel as the rest of the pack began quickly dropping back.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Towards the top I made a pass when Jeff bobbled, but soon after he took control of the lead and I was back to sitting in.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>He relentlessly hammered up all of the climbs so I began to back off a little and use my skills to catch back up on the descents.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>This was working beautifully for the two following descents, but I got a little carried away with myself on the next descent losing my line and catapulting myself through a rock garden at a pretty high speed.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I hit the ground hard with an aching left shoulder and an instant loss of breath.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I sat down for about 30 seconds to shake the cobwebs out and make sure all was good before I got back on the bike.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Once back on the bike I felt slow at first and a bit uncoordinated and was soon passed by Ryan Fawley and another rider.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>After being passed I regained my composure and my 2<sup>nd</sup> place position then went on to chase after Jeff.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Even after crashing, my new bike left me with the same confidence as prior to my meeting with the ground.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I hit the downhill’s just as hard on lap two and chased on not knowing how far ahead Jeff would be.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>This effort turned into a lonely one as I did not see another soul out on the course until the finish.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>In the end I came in about 5 minutes back from Jeff and about 6 minutes ahead of Ryan.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Now it’s time to rest and heal up for Syllamo’s Revenge this coming weekend which is stop #2 in the NUE series.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I can’t wait.</p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-38983731618999016132011-04-18T19:36:00.001-07:002011-04-18T19:40:11.125-07:00Tour de Tykes<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjriX7cNTKJ_jgWNWKjhTrvl8VVf3OLlZVLDyaZP6sCxRCTcFWhst0yb325irHCezPNzU8li06499dJ6jdsMOM_MZ6cV6SVL1RMtcRdIJtLcHTBrzvj1f4f-acq8x159i9cZLs01deACt0/s1600/TDT1.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 370px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjriX7cNTKJ_jgWNWKjhTrvl8VVf3OLlZVLDyaZP6sCxRCTcFWhst0yb325irHCezPNzU8li06499dJ6jdsMOM_MZ6cV6SVL1RMtcRdIJtLcHTBrzvj1f4f-acq8x159i9cZLs01deACt0/s400/TDT1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597118219861454674" /></a><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', 'Bitstream Charter', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px; ">The Tour de Tykes XC race is one of my favorite stops in the MASS. The course is steep from start to finish, has tons of climbing (over 4,000' in 18 miles), and the downhills are a blast. Plus this race is close to my hometown of Locust Gap which is only 15 miles from where I grew up. Despite its proximity the only time I get to ride these trails is the day of the race. This year's race brought a stacked field with most of the Mid-Atlantic's fastest bunch so I knew I would have my work cut out for me. I am usually not much of a fast starter, but for some reason this race is always different. I always start it with one hard effort up the first climb into the singletrack in an attempt to start off with an early lead. As the race began I found myself pushing hard sitting on Jeff Schalk's wheel for the first half of the starting climb before making my own attack at the front. My first move was short lived as Jeff made a quick pass to regain the lead until we reached the first section of trail. Before the trail would narrow down to true singletrack I made one more attempt to get ahead of Jeff which gave me the lead and a quick 10 to 15 second gap. The first downhill went by pretty quick as I kept on the gas hoping to break up the rest of the chasers. As I started the second climb of the day I noticed that my lead had grown by another 5 to 10 seconds. I was feeling great so I continued to push harder, making it difficult for anyone to try to catch back on. After making it back into the singletrack again I was all on my own with nobody else in site. After a few minutes the course began to wrap around the mountain and double back giving a good view of the course behind me. I had noticed Jeff, Aaron, and Dylan were now about a minute back and I began to feel comfortable with my strategy. I took advantage of being by myself to properly refuel and simply have fun on the downhills rather than worrying about holding a wheel or looking for a place to pass. After a few more climbs I would descend back to the fireroad that we started on, grab a fresh bottle and take on the second half of the course. The second half has about the same amount of climbing though it never feels like it. I continued on by myself with an increasing paranoia of being caught. Every time the wind would kick up and rustle the leaves I would get gun shy. My heart rate would spike, and I would jump out of the saddle for a few seconds before I would realize that I was still alone. Towards the end of the race anyone who has ever done this event dreads the final "Moondance" climb which is a steep powerline climb with close to a 30 % grade, the steepest on the course. For me, this time reaching this climb gave me a sign of relief. With nobody in sight it was almost impossible to get caught as it is almost as fast to walk this climb as it is to ride and the following downhill is smooth enough to ride a flat to the finish if the unthinkable were to happen. Fortunately for me my race was trouble free and I was able to cruise to the finish with my first win in the MASS for the season.</span><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ0ZMW_ODrmyVSdtLP9d_zWJND81kluJ77EW5PQz1cnRYgdiT8J5tXJo_X7GRAYw5zYsvdCkLUc7bIhUsjsCzd3CK7atYncJ1LiYpHIkLeLRMMRhhNnfMDzccwG7kEopRprC5MuS7QiEQ/s1600/TdT4.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ0ZMW_ODrmyVSdtLP9d_zWJND81kluJ77EW5PQz1cnRYgdiT8J5tXJo_X7GRAYw5zYsvdCkLUc7bIhUsjsCzd3CK7atYncJ1LiYpHIkLeLRMMRhhNnfMDzccwG7kEopRprC5MuS7QiEQ/s400/TdT4.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597118403815177570" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE6m2f7LG7EXb3cNM4YU3wI2quOr2oBeBfkVdPW2UHh6QfMc-3j8b2nhMoLo3URkhqBhyphenhyphen-sRVEWh0Lnl8CO8YdqU61Fz_fRdMzKINSghny-VZjzsW9undT6_CLnxb7R1q9EVl5P5DFO1Q/s1600/TdT3.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 221px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE6m2f7LG7EXb3cNM4YU3wI2quOr2oBeBfkVdPW2UHh6QfMc-3j8b2nhMoLo3URkhqBhyphenhyphen-sRVEWh0Lnl8CO8YdqU61Fz_fRdMzKINSghny-VZjzsW9undT6_CLnxb7R1q9EVl5P5DFO1Q/s400/TdT3.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597118395236574226" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixvx0K2N4UnGNrphSy7ao5GDcli1xlg0ChyAg_9nGcztxXvxOecBh4Ef9CZ8r3XqI5NZiSo9WIhFZFZ_3365pt8bOJJKpI-SLqPgVrbj67enftgQ1M56c6u4Afs7L3SLMrahRXTDRB95Q/s1600/TdT2.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixvx0K2N4UnGNrphSy7ao5GDcli1xlg0ChyAg_9nGcztxXvxOecBh4Ef9CZ8r3XqI5NZiSo9WIhFZFZ_3365pt8bOJJKpI-SLqPgVrbj67enftgQ1M56c6u4Afs7L3SLMrahRXTDRB95Q/s400/TdT2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5597118395002701922" /></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-56533838033356054272011-04-05T10:41:00.000-07:002011-04-05T11:00:30.255-07:00Dragon's Tale<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKlPUh1lg5bx6nEj2beHep7k4Tzr9kplva-heexJEp261y0pAZJN50tuqHE3g_Oj1dbtJRbzIMqFfnZVcMMwBxt0AL13YM8-wiCnePL7_2aVOvddB0TK4hxK07jZ4wU6TPt5UuVl5Xchw/s1600/DragonsTale4.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 305px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKlPUh1lg5bx6nEj2beHep7k4Tzr9kplva-heexJEp261y0pAZJN50tuqHE3g_Oj1dbtJRbzIMqFfnZVcMMwBxt0AL13YM8-wiCnePL7_2aVOvddB0TK4hxK07jZ4wU6TPt5UuVl5Xchw/s400/DragonsTale4.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592159833965906482" /></a><br /><br />I’m always excited about doing races that I have never done before. There are a lot of unknowns. The competition, course route, and trail features keep your mind going as you take in the new experience. This weekend’s race was the Dragon’s Tale, a 40 miler in the mountains around New Castle, VA. I’ve been wanting to do this race over the past couple of years, but there had always been conflicting races preventing me from going. Being run by Chris Scott, I knew this would be a quality, well organized, and fun event to start my season on the East Coast. Looking at the course profile I knew there would be a lot of climbing with two trips up a 1500’ singletrack climb followed by a long ridge ride and ending with two shorter climbs and descents after coming down from the ridge. The rolling start brought us a few miles outside of town where we turned off onto a fireroad where the race officially began. I stayed near the front and could not wait to get through the notorious stream crossing that I had been hearing about during my warmup. After 4 or 5 COLD stream crossings we came to the final crossing which was too deep to ride across with the water being knee high. I was glad to be on the other side where the fireroad began to pitch upward and as the climb continued I slowly began to warm up. As we climbed I almost forgot I was at Dragon’s Tale and not the Shenandoah 100 since the dirt road climb seemed identical. Climbing higher up I began to push the pace sensing that the singletrack was coming soon. Finally I reached aid station 1 where I grabbed a quick bottle and was the first one to start the big climb with Ian Spivack of DCMTB close behind. Early on in the climb I upped my pace and slowly pulled away reaching the top alone. Once on top of the mountain I had wished that I had some time to stop, relax and take in the view. Looking out from the top of the ridge was a beautiful site of the Southern Virginia mountains, but with no time for site-seeing I continued across the ridge a short distance before descending back to the fireroad. The trip back down was a blast ripping through switchbacks, hopping over rocks and letting myself flow over the trail. By the time I reached the bottom I was refreshed and ready to climb again. I grabbed two more bottles at the aid station and hammered up the climb with the same effort as I had the first time, but towards the top I started to notice some fatigue as I was forced to walk a couple of the steep switchbacks that I had ridden the first time up. Once back up on top the course followed the ridge out in the opposite direction for 12 miles before descending to the next aid station. I had really underestimated this section of trail. Being on top of the mountain I expected to encounter more gently rolling terrain, but most of the time it was either steep, rocky, or a combination of the two. After laboring twice up the big climb this part of the race was the most challenging, but the amazing views made it worthwhile. Towards the end I was hoping that each downhill would be the one that would take me back to the bottom of the mountain and once I made it there I was treated to one really great descent. Once at the bottom I filled up my bottle before leaving the last aid station and pushed on for the last six miles. Right out of the aid station it was back to climbing again. Although it wasn’t as long as the first climb it was much steeper and more difficult due to fatigue. Towards the top it got steep and rocky, so I decided to play the “no dab” game and try not to put a foot down. After a hard effort I successfully made it to the top without walking and hit the next downhill with a smile on my face. I pushed on for one more short and steep climb and then finally hit the last downhill which led to a dirt road which would soon turn to pavement leading to the finish. I rolled into the finish alone in 3:45:00 and took my first win of the season. I was completely satisfied with my new race experience and plan on making it a regular visit on my early season schedule.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhahO_45qUUE1_VPN1_O-Dfxr4HL8tMxSTFf41MxNWHFYw_oAPtXESEW2drvcLGG9NvuTd1ZL9xzJihGUk2DU4eMBF8SuhjZEGQz61edD5svjoTO-BRENp7mbktK2V_GhbWKy2YGpJsXDM/s1600/DragonsTale.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 308px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhahO_45qUUE1_VPN1_O-Dfxr4HL8tMxSTFf41MxNWHFYw_oAPtXESEW2drvcLGG9NvuTd1ZL9xzJihGUk2DU4eMBF8SuhjZEGQz61edD5svjoTO-BRENp7mbktK2V_GhbWKy2YGpJsXDM/s400/DragonsTale.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592159670144659122" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXk3usH0P7XXPMczYzfT2HNEpTBk1oQY0Am_74AMml9vuiRfKcXaNQ4J3SV6zE8x-tHh3X5tlLeFNPxLa21_KSk8L9QPnWb8kYDHZ_1PiuYejLK8U5cbVVtFbfGIVtQYTZ71ig5ZfyuTM/s1600/DragonsTale3.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 329px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXk3usH0P7XXPMczYzfT2HNEpTBk1oQY0Am_74AMml9vuiRfKcXaNQ4J3SV6zE8x-tHh3X5tlLeFNPxLa21_KSk8L9QPnWb8kYDHZ_1PiuYejLK8U5cbVVtFbfGIVtQYTZ71ig5ZfyuTM/s400/DragonsTale3.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592160784301135954" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5u9g7crdsr92OPumLG9t4MuclhF-gOXHMsSMADF3cNOASAvMvqlZGI9Xz529PeoeeL8aFrR2a0h1ZQIADcRw2hmRhTHcyCf6We_X8T98ocA8vIM4pKAmldJMJt6zUScNmswnXieLvSSM/s1600/DragonsTale2.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5u9g7crdsr92OPumLG9t4MuclhF-gOXHMsSMADF3cNOASAvMvqlZGI9Xz529PeoeeL8aFrR2a0h1ZQIADcRw2hmRhTHcyCf6We_X8T98ocA8vIM4pKAmldJMJt6zUScNmswnXieLvSSM/s400/DragonsTale2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592159984300470546" /></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-62352845702538116482011-03-27T10:58:00.001-07:002011-03-27T11:00:36.787-07:00California Dreaming<div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="MsoNormal">It’s been a busy couple of weeks as the race season has finally gotten underway, first with the opening Pro XCT race in Bonelli Park, CA followed by another Pro XCT race two weeks later in Fontana, CA.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Going into Bonelli I was totally unsure of what to expect.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>That first race of the season always has my nerves on end and my caffeine addiction does not help in the efforts of keeping me calm.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The morning of the race I may have appeared to be relaxed, but my mind was constantly racing thinking about all of the different possible outcomes to the start of the season, but once the gun went off it was go time.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Starting in the middle of close to 90 other racers I left my initial pacing up to the sea of riders jockeying for position.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Once the initial starting frenzy settled I began picking my way through the field and kept the highest pace I knew I coul</p><p class="MsoNormal">d maintain for the duration of the event.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The first of seven, three mile laps went extremely fast and the course left no time for resting.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Its short steep climbs, fast rocky descents, steep chutes, and berms kept me on edge and focused the entire time.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The second through fifth laps followed a similar pattern and I continued to pick off other racers one by one.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>By the beginning of the sixth lap the pain started to come on hard, but the brief three mile l</p><p class="MsoNormal">aps made it easy to press on without backing off too much, and after that it was one lap to go!<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>With such short laps I was surprised to not have gotten pulled as I did during my last Pro XCT event two years ago in Windham, NY.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>This gave me some good motivation along with the km markers that lined the course.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Seeing 6 k to go at the beginning of a lap is a good thing when you just want to be finished, considering that pro road racers begin positioning for a field sprint around this mark.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>So I dug in deep and sucked it up to the finish line only getting passed by one or two others along the way.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>At the end of the day I finished 33<sup>rd</sup> and was already thinking about Fontana in the coming weeks.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"></span></p><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7xyDIIySSvo_SH75Ur_qEjXx-narPQpImftXYeVkq5h5AqhQtSgqQn7WBXbrnvsC1p3mXwRLKuVkaXf_8Mr6aqsl-izaEB86JHRCFk5grGgVTIUSBzE0kSEbiGk4Rne3_Vhn2hgPI6V0/s400/DSCN0106.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 345px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588820898912870306" /> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The Fontana course was quite a bit different than Bonelli with much more climbing, a little more mileage (five, five mile laps), and lots of high speed technical goodness.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The main feature on the course is THE climb which rises 400 feet in a little over a half mile.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>This section is intense while just riding let alone while redlined in a race.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>After doing a couple of pre-ride laps on Thursday and Friday I could not wait to let loose on Saturday’s race.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>My call up for this week had me starting around the same halfway point and with the first race out of the way I was much less nervous, though the feeling never goes away whether it is a big UCI event like this or a local MASS race.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The start was pretty much the same as Bonelli for the first 100 yards until we hit the first little rise with a sharp turn at the top.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>This rise was small enough to spit to the top of, but with racers trying to fit 15 wide and make the turn it left most of us walking and I could not help but to laugh at the situation.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The same thing happened on the first small climb before it all calmed down and the field began to slowly string out.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I got lucky being in the right place at the right time in a few sections and was able to make up some solid ground riding past racers who were getting caught up in slower traffic and being forced off of their bikes.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>By the time we made it to the big climb for the first time I was scoping out my line which ran up a large rock slab right next to the beat in line that everyone else was taking.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It was open so I took it without hesitation passing at least ten others before jumping back in line.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>After that it was a slow crawl to the top before descending the mountain.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I was riding hard and felt good both on the ups and downs of the first lap so I followed the strategy of riding hard, conserving a bit before the big climb, hammering to the top, and “recovering” on the way to the bottom with some good efforts on the rolling climbs.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I was able to make some passes on the second and third laps while climbing and continued to feel strong.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>By lap four I was starting to crawl into the pain cave, and made a couple of more passes but those would soon be lost on the final lap.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>With one to go I still felt strong coming into the feed zone and up the first short climb, but that all ended when I hit the wall of a climb which also meant hitting the wall as in bonking for myself.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I had definitely been drinking enough out on the course, but I guess I had not realized how hard I had been pushing it until I started seeing stars every time I blinked. Time to take it slow!<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Trying to preserve as much energy as I could I made the slow crawl to the top and surprisingly was not passed until close to the summit where a train of less depleted riders hopped in front of me.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I forced myself not to follow my instincts on chasing and to try to recover which kept matters from getting worse.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I did manage to recover a bit and caught a breath of a second wind and was able to move at a not so slow speed up the rolling climbs that interrupted the long descent to the finish.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>At the end of the 25 mile death march I ended up in 52<sup>nd</sup> and finished my second ProXCT event of the year on the leaders lap.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Putting things into perspective I am definitely happy with my performance since it is early March and old man winter has not yet left PA.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>With some good race miles in my legs I’m ready to go home and do some local racing starting with the Dragon’s Tale 50 mile race next weekend in Southern VA.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It’s going to be a great year for sure and there are a few more Pro XCT’s and a pile of NUE races to gear up for.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-81350237224842286852011-03-21T19:12:00.000-07:002011-03-22T15:26:39.317-07:00Bringing this thing back again...After paying very little attention to this blog last year due to posting on the PAValleys.com blog I am finally going to be posting on here again. I can assure you there will be many exciting things to talk about. Since last season I've found a great new <a href="http://teamcf.org/">team</a> and have already begun my racing season at the first ProXCT in Bonelli two weekends ago. There will be more on that and a post in the near future on Fontana. So far the forecast is looking good out in Cali... rain showers almost every day! Maybe I'll get lucky enough for some mud, but if the sun is shining I guess I can't complain either!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-71164574048567251682010-06-01T15:10:00.001-07:002010-06-01T15:10:41.506-07:00Finally got a podium finishFinally got a podium finish in todays stage coming in 3rd place behind Bishop and Grant.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-34332907346831691022010-05-31T15:24:00.001-07:002010-05-31T15:24:55.221-07:00Two good days at TransTwo good days at Trans Sylvania. 6th in the prologue and 4th in todays 40 mile stage. Sitting in 4th overall!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-26910462418254903672010-05-16T17:18:00.001-07:002010-05-16T17:18:16.669-07:00Finally won at this year'sFinally won at this year's Dirt Sweat and Gears 12 hour race! Race report and pictures up soon at <a href="http://blog.pavalleys.com">blog.pavalleys.com</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-54898767280556800882010-02-10T06:38:00.000-08:002010-02-10T06:46:48.230-08:00A slap in the face followed by a kick to the teethThat's what it feels like to be living in PA right now. Just as I was getting into a good training routine the weather has been rather uncooperative. Over 2 feet of snow was dumped on Bedford over the weekend and another 5 or 6 inches since last night. With only a month and a half to go until I begin racing every weekend I will not let the weather get the best of me. The race season will start whether I get the base miles in or not. So last night I set a personal best of 2.5 hours on the trainer and surprisingly I wasn't completely bored out of my mind. Mixing up rides like this with a bit of snowshoeing should hopefully have me ready to go.... lets just wait and see.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-42447167651282885962010-01-08T07:36:00.000-08:002010-01-08T08:02:23.062-08:00New year, new team, more to come...For 2010, the domestic Cannondale Factory Racing team is no more and I will now be joining forces with the PAValleys.com team (formerly VisitPA.com). It has been a great run over the past 5 years racing for the Cannondale Factory Racing team and all of it's alias' as we continuously switched title sponsors. Some great memories have been made over the years and I cannot be thankful enough for the support that I've gotten. Even though we are in the middle of winter I cannot wait to start racing again with my new team. 2010 will be the best season yet as we are going to have a major focus on the <a href="http://www.masuperseries.com/">MASS</a>, <a href="http://www.rivertownrace.com/">River Towns Race Series</a>, the <a href="http://www.transylvaniaepic.com/">Transylvania Epic </a>, and I will personally be out to land a win at the 24 Hour Solo National Championships and land a few podium spots at some of the NUE 100 mile races. I'll also try to update this blog a little more and you will be able to check out team news at <a href="http://blog.pavalleys.com/">blog.pavalleys.com</a>.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-68834229858507702442009-09-15T08:09:00.001-07:002009-09-15T08:39:01.583-07:002 Down 2 to Go<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggqCsu4NM3mkE3i3en5BBv8hspqoK4b9V5Vz02AHvplCUo9t1HE_zhIFY-ec8zoq6eWdswe-96pPUW5bmWsctpi6qNZOsQ3KgERh0VuyMKnv-Ew9bKZzLsgpQ709cH8yE1i9cqqpGFjC0/s1600-h/Bear+Creek.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggqCsu4NM3mkE3i3en5BBv8hspqoK4b9V5Vz02AHvplCUo9t1HE_zhIFY-ec8zoq6eWdswe-96pPUW5bmWsctpi6qNZOsQ3KgERh0VuyMKnv-Ew9bKZzLsgpQ709cH8yE1i9cqqpGFjC0/s400/Bear+Creek.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381719150404751666" border="0" /></a><br />The Shenandoah 100 was a good test of fitness for this time of year. A flat and a couple of small mistakes had me finishing in 6th, a few spots back behind where I wanted to be in the results, but overall the race went great. The legs felt fresh on every climb, even the 17 miler that roundhouse kicked me in the face a few years back. I also cut my finishing time to under 7 and a half hours, which was over a half an hour faster than the last time I did the event and most of the race was all by myself! Finishing ahead of me were Jeremiah Bishop, Christian Tanguy, Jeff Schalk, Jesse Jakomait, and Sam Korber.<br /><br />Moving on to Bear Creek..... My legs still felt fresh and I was killing it on the climbs, but for some reason I could not ride smoothly through a rock garden to save myself. Maybe a little too much caffeine for the day had me trying to push too hard through sections that I should have been more relaxed on? Oh well, I still placed 3rd for the day behind Aaron and Harlan and wrapped up the overall win for the Mid Atlantic Super Series. Hopefully I get my skills back for this weekend's Terror of Teaberry 40 mile race at Michaux. I'm always looking forward to riding and racing at Michaux... as long as I can just relax and rip up some singletrack. The Teaberry race will be my final race before 24 Hours of Moab next month. Until then I will be putting in some long hours in the saddle, especially the final two Saturday's before Moab, so if anyone wants join me in riding till I bonk let me know. These rides will be either at Michaux or on the road near Shippensburg.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-48706445495360793682009-08-27T07:23:00.000-07:002009-08-27T07:28:30.415-07:00Picture Update<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5vY_BVFM6w8n3CQSdNjLWEib0Y3BrbyBX4KkAbTReLJjwA2slQXxChXqmCIBdtvGUZPrPow6LvAk7eAZsn-Q5YZpp_qlJtA5ud2q2iu5N5OZjTnIJOZQ8AG19WsZwRNQR6DIXFle3Bvw/s1600-h/2009_0816Windham20090019.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5vY_BVFM6w8n3CQSdNjLWEib0Y3BrbyBX4KkAbTReLJjwA2slQXxChXqmCIBdtvGUZPrPow6LvAk7eAZsn-Q5YZpp_qlJtA5ud2q2iu5N5OZjTnIJOZQ8AG19WsZwRNQR6DIXFle3Bvw/s400/2009_0816Windham20090019.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374650310548195154" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihu7KM8suURI-LJ5FZKiRPo473fS0A4VyAfHwUeyMWdhHIMZHaLeNX_3Udtun-bUbZDM5ZElUgFVpWokujxISA5d6BSnc0E1y4R1K13BaYEnHwzs9UntrgnReH4_FzvHAQTKsZgIwzzQM/s1600-h/2009_0816Windham20090016.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihu7KM8suURI-LJ5FZKiRPo473fS0A4VyAfHwUeyMWdhHIMZHaLeNX_3Udtun-bUbZDM5ZElUgFVpWokujxISA5d6BSnc0E1y4R1K13BaYEnHwzs9UntrgnReH4_FzvHAQTKsZgIwzzQM/s400/2009_0816Windham20090016.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374650305223693522" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzW4RdUC1QDa72_maFoVjQEZjS8tZXL7bJK7HzVU5HqWSV1dL-f3CVnoCYrc-aD8NlssWmWyeIWQG01MQlK_xnPtIST47hI1lvSjHDSD5LBRfgihEjtaqwJq-3_W1m7P5On_F5dPA9LNQ/s1600-h/2009_0816Windham20090012.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzW4RdUC1QDa72_maFoVjQEZjS8tZXL7bJK7HzVU5HqWSV1dL-f3CVnoCYrc-aD8NlssWmWyeIWQG01MQlK_xnPtIST47hI1lvSjHDSD5LBRfgihEjtaqwJq-3_W1m7P5On_F5dPA9LNQ/s400/2009_0816Windham20090012.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374650295017966066" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitpwLejoykNWcs0KFfrMQ0YH6ndZZ2VSZ5W0Zyy963ZJA0ei2nVUEa5hHciyvgd4ipti7IFh4Z0PrMh-c17Asdvqqu_-VUnV0G7NgAaX9YU-LZGDKFyPtgm8lD5C4aPuPwsO5S0OUABTs/s1600-h/2009_0816Windham20090006.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitpwLejoykNWcs0KFfrMQ0YH6ndZZ2VSZ5W0Zyy963ZJA0ei2nVUEa5hHciyvgd4ipti7IFh4Z0PrMh-c17Asdvqqu_-VUnV0G7NgAaX9YU-LZGDKFyPtgm8lD5C4aPuPwsO5S0OUABTs/s400/2009_0816Windham20090006.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374650288063057234" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhea1kwUANZt1rYLhnJ1SIJvVCGrzJYKWBkR3c-34O3sidkyimud4GycOmDsaNqP2vo9vE01GOB4eFisVBIe-8wD83tiHMoc-MmC5d2c7UuMEi75tB32f4G-vkZAaTQwdat0KKp_yttt78/s1600-h/2009+French+Creek+2.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhea1kwUANZt1rYLhnJ1SIJvVCGrzJYKWBkR3c-34O3sidkyimud4GycOmDsaNqP2vo9vE01GOB4eFisVBIe-8wD83tiHMoc-MmC5d2c7UuMEi75tB32f4G-vkZAaTQwdat0KKp_yttt78/s400/2009+French+Creek+2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5374650275663396866" border="0" /></a><br />I've been a bit lazy on the blogging, but I have to at least put in a picture update to show off the old man's photo skills. The racing had been good, and I can't wait for the Shenandoah 100. Let's just hope I don't bonk and have to drink from a creek like the last time I did this race.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-81439095419524245522009-07-29T05:41:00.000-07:002009-07-29T20:25:02.044-07:0024-9<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBnC17mByf2eSvjJC-ds_J1cJ4ksHGsgTRb5l0ghjLWMpZeTB2WMk_KAB0vg6HIyDYS5hd7Z3I_bqcm4yGK_NAvcWbWLBD7b73M0B9fwSOm2gU3iPHF4GoNiavFNDERqlk0uqixT43pSw/s1600-h/2009_07262009Mile90002-1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBnC17mByf2eSvjJC-ds_J1cJ4ksHGsgTRb5l0ghjLWMpZeTB2WMk_KAB0vg6HIyDYS5hd7Z3I_bqcm4yGK_NAvcWbWLBD7b73M0B9fwSOm2gU3iPHF4GoNiavFNDERqlk0uqixT43pSw/s400/2009_07262009Mile90002-1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363863176251638418" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwmhaUGeUF0sL-baIxWOgYnPVA56NzqMj1wCRi1A8NE7ifAZY8W822AKEFV3t8iROZ22Mk6wwhFZVk43vtn77_3P9ptBITh_nOkA6jUaOeAkxGKhhwWohiwtJeKvzc8fZHJfxA19rzqv8/s1600-h/2009_07262009Mile90011.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwmhaUGeUF0sL-baIxWOgYnPVA56NzqMj1wCRi1A8NE7ifAZY8W822AKEFV3t8iROZ22Mk6wwhFZVk43vtn77_3P9ptBITh_nOkA6jUaOeAkxGKhhwWohiwtJeKvzc8fZHJfxA19rzqv8/s400/2009_07262009Mile90011.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363863177283787938" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguE-e5m4R8KoOjv1OGfO1KdxuCBmcaJmaHe2UM6TkMbOWpRreV65qM6GunLRRab0_19F7QQrpeSrNMWJBBp8UmDvhzI58WGSpCWEr1N_Nl5urD04sMHL9VNSJWk4i2rmai7gRDtCjJzUw/s1600-h/2009_07262009Mile90021.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 285px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguE-e5m4R8KoOjv1OGfO1KdxuCBmcaJmaHe2UM6TkMbOWpRreV65qM6GunLRRab0_19F7QQrpeSrNMWJBBp8UmDvhzI58WGSpCWEr1N_Nl5urD04sMHL9VNSJWk4i2rmai7gRDtCjJzUw/s400/2009_07262009Mile90021.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363863187609776706" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKYnwYTCVz4qCjvyPDPCzI60jgFbCYbkjiQd2z3iOO0vNoJBBfQkcrMwd12hujRXJN2gZ1pUxyl5yRNjh6hbGhloUJMIM_1SbVPYDNWIMUBtohrUbYzUIpom9G90izkubCHRWT_vY_32k/s1600-h/2009_07262009Mile90025.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKYnwYTCVz4qCjvyPDPCzI60jgFbCYbkjiQd2z3iOO0vNoJBBfQkcrMwd12hujRXJN2gZ1pUxyl5yRNjh6hbGhloUJMIM_1SbVPYDNWIMUBtohrUbYzUIpom9G90izkubCHRWT_vY_32k/s400/2009_07262009Mile90025.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363863188597207506" border="0" /></a>Stop #2 on the Granny Gear National Points Series brought me back to 9 Mile State Forest in Wausau, WI. Looking back at what had happened last year, I wasn't looking forward to this one. It was bound to be a long day in the hurt locker. The course is tons of fun, but mostly flat which means that there are no breaks at all. To move forward you must pedal, and coasting is limited. After winning the first race at Big Bear I was motivated enough to go out and give it my all. On Thursday I packed everything up and spent 16 hours in the car driving to WI with Jocelyn and my parents. We rolled into the hotel late that night and immediately went to bed. Friday called for an easy pre-ride of the course which was done on a 2010 Scalpel (lighter, faster, better) which I would also pilot for a few laps during the race. After the pre-ride I went out with Jocelyn and showed her around on some singletrack for the first time and then finished the ride on some access roads as we looked for good photo ops with my Dad. After that was dinner time and bed for a good nights rest.<br /><br />The morning of the race, I was nervous as usual and couldn't wait to get this whole thing started. I repeated my start from Big Bear with a good run and was the first solo on the bike. Hitting the first couple of laps pretty hard, I found myself at the front, but with local Ben Koenig right behind. Not knowing much about Ben beforehand left me with some uncertainties. Throughout the day laps I kept my pace steady and brisk, but could not put more than a minute on Ben during any given lap and he was always in sight. I began to prepare myself for a hard fought race to the end. Once the sun set and the night set in I picked up my efforts slightly and began to gain some time on Ben and the rest of the solo field. The night went by quick as I switched from my Scalpel to my 29'er and let my Lupine Betty lead the way. Each lap I would gain a few minutes which added up to a half hour advantage by sunrise. As the sun came up I returned back to my Scalpel and picked up the pace once again in a final effort to seal in the win. By 10:30 a.m. I gained another 20 minutes on Ben and reassured myself the top spot on the podium and a comfortable lead in the Granny Gear Series over Bob Anderson, who placed 3rd for the day. This win did not come easy at all as the pressure was on the entire race. One bad lap and the race could have been lost. Congrats to all who suffered this one out for the full 24 hours. This course is not an easy one to push through. And as always thanks to Jocelyn and my parents for their support. These races couldn't be done without you! Only one more 24 this year and I already cannot wait.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-54854290465297205082009-07-17T07:27:00.000-07:002009-07-17T08:29:47.712-07:00Fair Hill ClassicIt's been a while since I had to get up at 4 a.m. for a bike race... I don't really like getting up at 4 a.m. , but after a mug of coffee and some chocolate covered espresso beans (Thanks Jocelyn) I was fully awake and we were about halfway to Elkton, MD. I haven't done this race for a few years, but this is always a good one to go to. The trails are fun and twisty, the turnout is usually pretty high which draws some good competition, and it is usually hot and humid which would be the case for the day's race. After the 2.5 hour drive listening to a combination of Otep and Stretch Arm Strong Jocelyn and I got to the race with about 2 hours to spare to the start. I went over the map I printed out for her and my parents to locate me throughout the race and was relieved that it seemed fairly simple for once (little did I know most of the roads were unaccessible that appeared on the map). After an easy warm up I rolled up to the starting line and grabbed a spot up front and waited anxiously for go time. The start was fast. Instead of leading this one out, I sat in around 5th place for the first couple of miles before sprinting to the front in order to get into the singletrack first. I was feeling great pushing the big ring, railing turns, and feeling comfortable, but was unable to gain any time on the other racers on this mostly rolling and smooth course. I soon zoned out and blew a turn losing about 5 positions which I would eventually gain back as I made my way into 2nd place behind one of the twins. From this point on I would remain in a twin and Chris Beck sandwhich for the next 10 miles or so until Chris laid down an attack and I followed dropping both twins. I took over the lead in the singletrack and Chris followed close behind. We kept the pace high and made every effort to keep on gaining time on the rest of the pack. The second half of the course went by in a flash and the only thing I remember was how much it hurt. By the end Chris was still with me as we came out onto the final stretch of the course which was a wide open section of dirt road, pavement, and grass. We both prepared for a sprint finish and left every ounce of energy behind as we battled for the top spot. In the end I finished 2nd just a few seconds behind and about 3 minutes up on the twins. It was a great race, but I really can't wait for this upcoming weekend at Michaux. Their summer race has been my favorite since I've started racing.<br /><br /><br />Some pics from the Long Pine Classic..... singlespeeder.smugmug.com<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAIQhRtlANxckDFrSbFzg4NDhKV5Xo9OTkmxofv2f4k7AUelZaRFJJrPFyJFmNJd_BgF7cqaMj7x1GMbFJMb4khwCBhweF4hq-ciHEtKyM36TS7UDX5TeJyrs5tIr4KHFvAeT1-PpWWFs/s1600-h/591584146_4rKAT-X3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 268px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAIQhRtlANxckDFrSbFzg4NDhKV5Xo9OTkmxofv2f4k7AUelZaRFJJrPFyJFmNJd_BgF7cqaMj7x1GMbFJMb4khwCBhweF4hq-ciHEtKyM36TS7UDX5TeJyrs5tIr4KHFvAeT1-PpWWFs/s400/591584146_4rKAT-X3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5359448128213049794" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdrjpsMZabYS99RVII9VVF_35r8I8rUI01CX6U1PVoyrVu-j4mVsTkW6zWM9qjcbR1X-D-a691E1My7QfuCN6cHYvA1IrxBJLMcBe0WrsiyEcqS5n2vP5SPtcXX2b2WkFeq2VF9WJNzd8/s1600-h/591584212_hFLWe-X3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 268px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdrjpsMZabYS99RVII9VVF_35r8I8rUI01CX6U1PVoyrVu-j4mVsTkW6zWM9qjcbR1X-D-a691E1My7QfuCN6cHYvA1IrxBJLMcBe0WrsiyEcqS5n2vP5SPtcXX2b2WkFeq2VF9WJNzd8/s400/591584212_hFLWe-X3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5359448300812303410" border="0" /></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-30750774158277123412009-07-09T11:29:00.000-07:002009-07-09T12:18:46.918-07:00Long Pine ClassicThis was my first race back into action since Big Bear a few weeks ago. I was feeling well rested, but was unsure of how fast I might be in a cross country style event. Regardless, I'd be racing at Michaux, the best place in the country to ride a bike if you drool over rock gardens, long climbs, and bone jarring descents like I do. The start of the race was about as relaxed as any other Michaux race despite being a part of the MASS series. We had a group rollout with a moto leading the way and chatter filled the air among the peleton. We continued at a casual pace for about a half of a mile until I got bored and picked up the pace and decidedly started the race for the day. The course turned left up a steep fireroad climb and I was passed by Ray, Martin, and another racer but kept on their wheels as we continued to climb. It hurt, but I felt like I could have gone a bit harder if needed. About halfway up the climb, the course entered the first section of singletrack. Just before going into the singletrack I snuck into 2nd place behind Martin. It wouldn't be much longer until we would put a gap on those behind us as we shredded the sweet singletrack that Michaux has to offer. I continued to ride with Martin throughout the first half of the course, then decided to make my move on an extended climb up Canada Hollow where I gained a 30 second lead. After descending some fireroads and wide trail I saw Jocelyn and my parents waiting for me. I accidentally threw a fresh bottle to the ground as Jocelyn handed me a fresh bottle which was meant to replace the empty in my back jersey pocket. Not realizing this right away, I continued on and felt like a dumbass moments later after noticing what I had done. Just seconds after entering the next climb I became aware of a slowly leaking rear tire and stopped to air it up. As I did Martin appeared out of nowhere. This led me to think that this would be a race to the finish. I hopped back on my Scalpel and continued with the steep climb, passing Martin on the way up. We were about 2/3 of the way through the race and I felt fine, so I decided to dig deep and leave everything I had out on the course. There was still a considerable amount of climbing left, which allowed for me to gain about a 2 minute lead. Getting closer to the finish, I knew it would be almost all downhill back to the venue, which gave me some comfort knowing that I had the race won short of a crash or a mechanical. Making my way onto the last section of trail, I climbed up a powerline and prepared for the final short decent to the finish when I was stopped by the timing crew who appeared to be spectators until I was right next to them. Looks like I'm back up to speed from Big Bear and on a winning streak. This makes 3 in a row since Tour de Tykes. Props to Zack and the Fast Forward Development Team for hosting their first MASS race. The course was amazing and well organized... and what other MASS race do you get to spray champagne on the podium?Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5092659845909228572.post-86604615122006536482009-06-16T19:20:00.000-07:002009-06-16T20:31:58.205-07:0024 Hours of Big Bear<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikmtfEn1wG2JxG7fWqjPWy0MGiLDp6OWvhnyE8hk3YTa_zuc3cwkycCjk4VoWs0HIjmEfbrnzA81UE7iX-CnFvR2hzll8NN_-Eu3giiE6ja7HeMPAyG0-x9wUcmsGQfHHO26yHdJNM_Xg/s1600-h/100_1138.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikmtfEn1wG2JxG7fWqjPWy0MGiLDp6OWvhnyE8hk3YTa_zuc3cwkycCjk4VoWs0HIjmEfbrnzA81UE7iX-CnFvR2hzll8NN_-Eu3giiE6ja7HeMPAyG0-x9wUcmsGQfHHO26yHdJNM_Xg/s400/100_1138.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5348133382674377170" border="0" /></a><br />With this year's racing season being focused around the Granny Gear 24 Hour National Point Series, I was extremely nervous all week about racing at Big Bear. If you have never been around one of these races there is a lot that you might be unaware of as far as preparation goes. Besides physically being able to race for this long EVERYTHING needs to be PERFECT or at least near perfect for the race to be a success. That goes for having the proper nutrition during the race, having a backup bike in perfect condition at all times, and having a pit crew to take care of all of this plus provide split times, encouragement, a little bit of love, and sometimes a cruel sense of humor to keep you going if things get bad.<br /><br />Saturday morning, race day, I woke up with a sore throat and a little bit of sinus congestion... just what I wanted to start off with for a 24 hour race. Instead of thinking about it too much I ignored it as best as possible and kept the not so good feelings to myself. This was not going to affect my race. We rolled into our pit area after breakfast and my parents began to set up as I lounged around and hung out with Rob, who saved us a kick ass spot to pit in on the first section of singletrack. The morning seemed like it was dragging on forever waiting for the race to start, but soon enough it would be time for the LeMans (running) start, which I would rather take a time penalty than participate in, but unfortunately that is not an option. Altough I despise this kind of start, I was the 3rd person to my bike after the run. No too bad for a short legged boy. Only two others were ahead, Josh Tostado and somebody riding for a duo team. After the first few miles of trail, I settled into the pace I would attempt to hold for the remaining 23 hours and however many minutes remained. Everything was going smoothly as planned and the course was a blast to ride. It was almost all singletrack with a few rocky sections, 4 or 5 steep short climbs, one breath taking downhill, and a little bit of West Virginia mud. My Cannondale 29'er handled the course flawlessly and would eventually be backed up by my Scalpel for whenever I needed that little bit of rear suspension to take the edge off. After finishing my third lap I pulled into my pit to see that Jocelyn had made it to the race and was already helping my parents help me. I grabbed a quick bite to eat, collected my bottles, gave her a big muddy kiss, and went back to business. After a few more laps it would be time to mount Betty on my helmet and ride off into the night. This is the part I always dread during a 24 hour race. The night will either make you or break you. Since I tried to conserve as much as I could during the day, I planned to keep the pace steady at night and try to make some time on Josh who now had about a 20 minute gap on me. Pushing on through the night I felt better every lap and for the most part was able to keep an awareness of everything that was going on around me. After midnight I made an extended stop to sing Happy Birthday to my Mom! Gotta love her for putting up with this kind of nonsense, especially on her birthday. After that it was time for another lap and some more suffering. Everything was hurting as usual, but my attitude remained positive the entire time. Towards the end of the night I was beginning to gain back some time on Josh and I was prepared for this to be a race to the end between us. However this was not the case as Josh had cramped up badly just before sunrise and was forced to stop, leaving me with the lead, 2 laps up on 2nd place. As much as I would have liked to take this race to the very end, I felt a sign of relief and was able to back off of the gas a little and try to enjoy my final few laps on the course. I finished my final lap at 9:30a.m. after my dad had figured out that it would be impossible to be caught after this time. This concluded my first big win of the season and gave me a huge confidence boost for the next stop in the Granny Gear series at 24 Hours of 9 Mile next month. I am already looking forward to doing this again! And big thanks to my parents and Jocelyn for the support this weekend, you're the best. I could not do these races without you.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com4